


"What am I not great at?"

by erintoknow



Series: Aria [5]
Category: Fallen Hero Series - Malin Rydén, Fallen Hero: Rebirth (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Female Friendship, POV Female Character, POV Second Person, Trans Character, Trans Female Character, Transitioning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-10
Updated: 2019-06-10
Packaged: 2020-04-24 03:19:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19164763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/erintoknow/pseuds/erintoknow
Summary: Just what is Charge's deal? Who does she think she is? Why can't you keep your distance?





	"What am I not great at?"

**Author's Note:**

> [[Revolution Lover by Left At London]](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFsPWVTXwcQ)

“And she–she–she just– she just waltzed right up to him, said ‘oh, I don’t believe you’ and then k–k–k–kissed him! I mean, um – I know _I_ couldn’t believe it.” You adjust the back of your hood, making sure it’s still firmly in place. In the background you can still hear the rush of water from the fire hoses as the LDFD finish dousing RabbleRouser’s latest arson attempt. You take a deep breath, trying to will yourself to be calm even as the flash of the police lights in the corner of your vision work to keep you on edge. You’re Sidestep now. You’re a hero. You’re friends with the Rangers even. You should have nothing to fear from the police.

Anathema sits down across from you on an unbroken piece of brick fencing, an artifact from before The Big One, kicking her legs back and forth against the brickwork. “Yeah, that’s Charge for you.” A mischievous glint appears in her eye. “I hope that news copter caught it. It’s been awhile since I had something to put on the fridge.”

You look up at her, districted from your breathing exercise. “Huh?”

The imp of a woman across from you breaks into a cackle. “The fridge, girl! Don’t tell me you haven’t seen the fridge yet!” She points behind you at an imaginary refrigerator. “Any time ol’ Jules gets her mack on I make sure to put a little reminder on the fridge for everyone. I think this will be like, the eighth or ninth since I started doing it?” She shrugs, tossing a pebble at a broken sign laying in the rubble.

You pace back and forth, talking with your hands. “I don’t– I don't understand." In the middle of a fight? With… a super-villain? "What if he–” You cut yourself off, then think to add “W–wait. Doesn’t she– doesn't she have a boyfriend?” 

“Yeah, well…” Anathema gives you a pointed look, “I don’t know if you noticed this, but Charge isn’t too great at the whole ‘relationship’ thing.”

“N–not the only thing she’s not great at.” You retort. If she could have just followed the plan for once…

“What am I not great at?”

You give a little jump as Ortega claps you on the shoulder. You don’t know if you’ll ever get used to how she can just pop up on you like this without being able to sense her coming. You move aside, partly to include Ortega in the conversation, mostly to get her ash-covered hand off your shoulder.

Anathema tries to put on her best innocent face. “Oh nothing, I was just hearing all about your latest conquest from Sidestep here.” You want to sink under the rubble. Traitor, you mouth at her. Though the effect is slightly ruined by your full-face mask.

Ortega at least has the decency to look suitably embarrassed. “Haha, yeah. It was the quickest way I could think of so I could zap ‘im.” She glances at Anathema, happily swinging her legs back and forth on her brickwork perch. “Hey, listen, Themmy, you aren’t going to–“

“You know the rules, Charge!” Anathema cackles. 

“It was just a dumb kiss,” Ortega protests, crossing her arms. “It’s not like it means anything.”

“It was ‘just’-? That – that was reckless as–as–as hell, you idiot.” You say, finally speaking up.

Ortega turns to look at you with what she must think is a reassuring smile. “Hey, you don’t need worry about me. I’ve been at this awhile now.” She raises an ash covered arm to rub at the back of her neck, it’s a struggle not to slap her hand away, she’s going to get soot in the ports back there. “I’ve learned when it’s safe to smooch,” she finishes with a wink in your direction. For some reason it feels like your heart skips a beat.

“You aren’t– You can’t be sure-” You sputter and force yourself to stop talking for a moment, frustration mounting as you ball your hands into fists.  You try again. “You can’t just– you can’t read people, not like I can.”

“Well then…” She walks past the two of you and picks up a damaged crosswalk sign off the ground. “I guess you’ll just have to stick around and check for me next time, okay, Sidestep?” You want to deck that grin right off her face. Where does she get off being this smug? “Alright,” you swear can hear the smile in her voice as she tucks the metal plate under one arm, “I gotta finish this up or we’ll never beat the rush hour for dinner.”

Wait. What?

“W–we?” You ask and you can’t keep the surprise out of your voice.

“Yeah, ‘We’. The three of us are eating out tonight.” Ortega turns and jabs the sign at both you and Anathema in turn.

“You... you can’t just decide that!”

You look to Anathema for back-up and only sense your own surprise mirrored back at you, “Don’t look at me,” she says.

“Sure I can,” Julia grins and tips her hand in a mock salute. “Perk of being the Marshall.” She turns with a wave and saunters over to the police van where a very unconscious RabbleRouser is being strapped to a gurney. 

You take a step towards her as she walks away and shake a fist at Ortega’s back. “That’s not what that _means_ you idiot!” You yell after her. “And–and–and I’m not a Ranger anyway!”

As soon as Ortega is out of the hearing you let your shoulders slump and take a seat on a free piece of rubble as hold your head in your hands. Where did you lose control of the conversation? Was it really the moment Ortega stepped in? You’ll fix her. She thinks she can bribe you with food? She’s not the boss of you. You’ll just slip away again like always. Stupid, smug, full-of-her-self, busy-body, with her stupid pretty face. Could have gotten herself killed and has the nerve to act like everything’s just–

“Oh man,” Anathema cackles and you jerk your heard up. Were you talking out loud? Oh no.

“What? What?” You stiffen and then your face slowly reddens as you get a better sense of what she’s thinking. 

Anathema is looking at you with a mixture of amusement and pity written across her face. “You know, you’ve had me wondering for a while, but, wow, you have got it bad, girl.”

“D–d–don't know what you’re talking about,” you manage to force out.

“You don’t have to be all embarrassed about it,” Anathema needles, “it’s not like Charge knows how to turn off the charm.”

“I do not– Orteg-Charge is just, um – just a friend. If even.” You insist, willing Anathema to be wrong. You’re not interested in… that. No way. Never mind with a woman – another woman, you correct yourself. And especially not Ortega. The idea makes your stomach twist in knots. It’s too terrifying to contemplate. 

“Mmmm…” Anathema drums her hand on her chin, thinking. “Charge is a little harder to read then you are, since that’s like her–“

“Excuse me?” You don’t think you’ve ever been so insulted in your life.

Anathema laughs and claps her hands. “Yeah, see? Exactly.” You glare at her, silent, unable to correct the record. She takes this as permission to continue. “anyway, if you want my opinion; Charge is real good at uh, ‘charging’ into relationships,” she waggles her eyebrows at you to make sure you got the pun, “but, she’s real bad at staying there. I mean, great smile, killer bod, sure, but given that and well…. you also have to consider-” Anathema sweeps out with her hand and shoots you a glance from the corner of her eye. “People like us aren’t really… built for the spotlight, you know? Not like she is.”

You follow Anathema’s gaze to where Ortega’s discussion with the police has given way to a pair of news crews pressing microphones in her face. It occurs to you that Themmy is more right than she could know. Now matter how human you could learn to be, there’s some parts of their world you’ll never be able to go. You turn away from Ortega to stare at your lap, running a finger down your thigh, tracing a pattern only you can see there.

Anathema gets up from her spot and crosses the distance to you, and you let her tap you lightly on the shoulder. “Hey, don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me, Sidestep.” That gleam in her eye returns for a moment, “Or… should we start calling you Starstruck?”

You glare up at her. “Just die.” You hiss.

Anathema’s mouth turns upwards in the smallest smile. She raises her empty hand in mock contrition. “Little chance of that, I’m afraid.”


End file.
